Zahraa Update—In Surgery, Out of Surgery!

Matt Willingham

In and out—sometimes it’s just that fast!

Since our two lead Iraqi surgeons were busy, Zahraa’s operation (pictured above) was performed by Dr. Novick and one of the local surgical residents, Dr. Husam. It was a great opportunity for one of the younger doctors to get some valuable first-hand experience with “The Chief” as he likes to call Dr. Novick, and now Zahraa’s heart defect has been corrected!

Zahraa’s fix was the perfect blend for us: a life saved and a doctor trained.

And now she’s on her way to recovery in the ICU. I snapped this photo of her while she was still slightly drugged up from her surgery, but mom and dad are finally able to breathe that sigh of relief.

Now we just have to wait and see how she does in the ICU. More updates on this sweet little girl to come!